Glee!

For my final song choice, I decided to choose 'Loser Like Me' because I think it addresses a type of freedom that we often overlook. It's the freedom of identity. In today's society, teenagers succumb to a lot of pressure to conform to a specific ideal image. There are expectations placed on both girls and boys alike to project an image of football jock or cheerleader. We look up to 'idols' who project ideals of being unique, yet we fail to accept people who embrace being different from those around them. To me, this song has potential to be an anthem of this new generation. It is a message of learning to shake off the barbs and insults people throw our way, and embracing the opportunity to be unique. 

Yeah, you may think that I'm a zero

But, hey, everyone you wanna be

Probably started off like me

You may say that I'm a freakshow (I don't care)

But, hey, give me just a little time

I bet you're gonna change your mind

All of the dirt you've been throwin' my way

It ain't so hard to take, that's right

'Cause I know one day you'll be screamin' my name

And I'll just look away, that's right

(Chorus)

Just go ahead and hate on me and run your mouth

So everyone can hear

Hit me with the words you got and knock me down

Baby, I don't care

Keep it up, I'm tunin' up to fade you out

You wanna be

You wanna be

A loser like me

A loser like me

Push me up against the locker

And hey, all I do is shake it off

I'll get you back when I'm your boss

I'm not thinkin' 'bout you haters

'Cause hey, I could be a superstar

I'll see you when you wash my car

Hey, you, over there

Keep the L up-up in the air

Hey, you, over there

Keep the L up, 'cause I don't care

You can throw your sticks, and you can throw your stones

Like a rocket, just watch me go

Yeah, l-o-s-e-r

I can only be who I are

Wicked!

I'm coming to the end of my blog and I thought I'd end with a couple unusual, somewhat unexpected songs. The first one is 'Defying Gravity' (had to include Broadway). I decided to include this song because it addresses the idea of personal freedom. Liberty from the constraints of what society decides we should be. It chronicles the mental journey of Elphaba as she decides to shake of the control of the other wizards of Oz. She chooses to count her cost and realizes "Some things I cannot change, but till I try, I'll never know!" Out of all the songs I looked at through this blog, this is one of the only songs that tackled the idea of actually trying to change things. Yes, there are many things in the world to change, and yes, we might not be able to change some things but we have to try. 

Something has changed within me

Something is not the same

I'm through with playing by the rules

Of someone else's game

Too late for second-guessing

Too late to go back to sleep

It's time to trust my instincts

Close my eyes: and leap!

It's time to try

Defying gravity

I think I'll try

Defying gravity

Kiss me goodbye

I am defying gravity

And you wont bring me down!

I'm through accepting limits

''cause someone says they're so

Some things I cannot change

But till I try, I'll never know!

Too long I've been afraid of

Losing love I guess I've lost

Well, if that's love

It comes at much too high a cost!

I'd sooner buy

Defying gravity

Kiss me goodbye

I'm defying gravity

I think I'll try

Defying gravity

And you wont bring me down!

We Don't Want Your War

This song is about the freedom to make informed decisions, in this case, against war. It addresses the idea of that we need to stop taking the things that we are told at face value and search for the truth. I find the reference to the story of 'The Emperor's New Clothing' an interesting twist. It implies that the people of this country are afraid to point out the truth because they are afraid of the "Emperor".



When you can't believe a word they say
And you're haunted by the swords they raise
Like a rabid dog we've seen before
They refuse to hear the world pounding, pounding down their door

We don't want your war
Let's yell a little louder now
We don't want your war
All stand together tall
We don't want your war
But you keep telling us, you keep telling us we do

The king has no clothes so he leads by fear
We must challenge all the lies we hear
The devil's 'bombs' has an oily smell
Frames a legacy with infamy and he burns it, he burns it into hell

Try to turn us into lemmings with their magic on TV
Leaking military secrets is one of their specialties
To reporters hanging on their words like schoolgirls in love
They've got the scoop, but we're no closer to the truth

If we raise our flag on a million graves
Will we all be proud or will we be ashamed?
Of our leadership, greedy and arrogant
And we'll all be judged by the choices, the choices that we made

We don't want your war
Let's all sing a little louder now
We don't want your war
All stand together tall
We don't want your war
But you keep telling us we do
We don't want your war
All stand together and yell
We don't want your war
All stand together tall
We don't want your war
So stop telling us, Stop telling us we do

Swing Low, Sweet Chariot!

I was completely astonished to discover that this song was a favorite of Harriet Tubman, an escaped slave who played an important role in the underground railroad. She loved music and loved to sing. She even used music to pass secret messages on to the slaves she was helping escape. This specific song is about the longing of slaves to escape to freedom through the efforts of the underground railroad. The 'Jordan' symbolizes the Ohio or Mississippi Rivers and the 'band of angels' are the workers of the Underground Railroad who came to carry them home to freedom in the North or in Canada.



Swing low, sweet chariot,
Comin' forth to carry me home!

I looked over Jordan and what did I see,
Comin' for to carry me home!
A band of angels comin' after me,
Comin' for to carry me home!

If you get there before I do,
Comin' for to carry me home,
Jess tell my friends that I'm acomin' too,
Comin' for to carry me home.

I'm sometimes up and sometimes down,
Comin' for to carry me home,
But still my soul feels heavenly bound
Comin' for to carry me home!

Les Miserables

I kind of stumbled across this song as I was looking for more songs to add to my blog. Yes I know it isn't necessarily "American", however Les Miserables is so universally known I couldn't pass it by. It's a rally cry to all people, a call to stand up for the right to be free. This song, also touches on the idea that freedom isn't free. "Then join in the fight, that will give you the right to be free!" We must earn the right to be free. The other idea from this song that jumped out at me is from the last stanza.


"Will you give all you can give

So that our banner may advance

Some will fall and some will live

Will you stand up and take your chance?"

It's the idea that freedom requires sacrifice and those who pursue freedom must be willing to sacrifice for the cause.

Do you hear the people sing?
Singing a song of angry men?
It is the music of a people
Who will not be slaves again!
When the beating of your heart
Echoes the beating of the drums
There is a life about to start
When tomorrow comes!

Will you join in our crusade?
Who will be strong and stand with me?
Beyond the barricade
Is there a world you long to see?
Then join in the fight
That will give you the right to be free!

Will you give all you can give
So that our banner may advance
Some will fall and some will live
Will you stand up and take your chance?
The blood of the martyrs
Will water the meadows of France!

A Little Rush...

"Something For Nothing" by Rush is the song I decided to talk about this time. The reason I chose this song is because I believe it hits on a important point about freedom. Rush talks about the fact that just waiting for the "winds of change to sweep the clouds away" is not all we should do. The chorus tells us that you have to work for your liberty and freedom. "You cant have freedom for free." Yet, we feel that freedom is something we are entitled to because we are so accustomed to having it. We tend to forget that people have given their lives and fought long and hard for that freedom we take for granted. We have a responsibility to work to protect that freedom and pass it on to the generations to follow. 

Waiting for the winds of change

To sweep the clouds away

Waiting for the rainbow's end

To cast its gold your way

Countless ways

You pass the days

Waiting for someone to call

And turn your world around

Looking for an answer

To the question you have found

Looking for

An open door

You don't get something for nothing

You can't have freedom for free

You won't get wise

With the sleep still in your eyes

No matter what your dreams might be

What you own is your own kingdom

What you do is your own glory

What you love is your own power

What you live is your own story

In your head is the answer

Let it guide you along

Let your heart be the anchor

And the beat of your own song

You don't get something for nothing

You can't have freedom for free

You won't get wise

With the sleep still in your eyes

No matter what your dreams might be

Is this any different from John Mayer?

I fell in love with this song when I first heard it. To me, it was a song of hope and faith. In parts of the song Cooke expresses a weariness at the disappointments and hardships of life, but he remembers that one day a change will come.

A few posts back I talked about John Mayer's "Waiting on the World to Change". He's received a lot of criticism because his song seems to be somewhat apathetic. However, compare Sam Cooke's song to John Mayer's. To me, the theme of each of these songs is the same. They, both, identify problems or troubles, and acknowledge the hope will one day come. They look forward to the day when that hope is realised. So why, then, is one song praised and the other looked down on?

I was born by the river in a little tent
Oh and just like the river I've been running ever since
It's been a long, a long time coming
But I know a change gonna come, oh yes it will

It's been too hard living but I'm afraid to die
Cause I don't know what's up there beyond the sky
It's been a long, a long time coming
But I know a change gonna come, oh yes it will

I go to the movie and I go downtown
Somebody keep telling me don't hang around
It's been a long, a long time coming
But I know a change gonna come, oh yes it will
 
Then I go to my brother
And I say brother help me please
But he winds up knocking me
Back down on my knees
 
Ohhhhhhhhh.....
 
There been times that I thought I couldn't last for long
But now I think I'm able to carry on
It's been a long, a long time coming
But I know a change gonna come, oh yes it will

Nina Simone

I think I would be remiss if I didn't include some of the more renown protest artists. First up, Nina Simone. I chose the song, "I Wish I Knew How It Would Feel to be Free".

Growing up in North America, we take our freedom for granted. Yes, we learn about slavery and the abolition and the fight for independence yet the price that people paid for the freedoms we are so used to doesn't always sink in. These freedoms are a part of our life everyday. What would our lives be like if we didn't have the freedom of speech, to express what we think and feel without hindrance? Or what if we didn't have the freedom to pursue whatever path of faith we chose, constrained on all sides by the restraints of the government? And this is the freedom we take for granted. Many times, we don't know what we have until it is gone.

You're the Voice

When I first started listening to this song, I was slightly repulsed. It wasn't my style of music. Then, I heard the lines "How long can we look at each other down the barrel of a gun?" I started to really pay attention to the lyrics after that. I found this song to be a call to incite a change - a change that we have the power to bring about. It appeals to one institution we all have in common, the family. By appealing to family, it appeals to our innate sense of love. 

The other interesting idea that jumped out at me about this song is that it puts the responsibility on us. We are the voice and we have the chance to change the world around us. Many times we dont really consider that freedom and liberty are things we have to work for. They dont just occur. Because of how we have grown up, we just take it for granted. In order for the ideas of freedom and liberty to persist we have to make the effort to preserve it. 

Together, we have 'the power to be powerful'. Together, we can be the change we want to see. 

We have the chance to
turn the pages over
We can write what we wanna write
We gotta make ends meet
before we get much older
We're all someone's daughter
We're all someone's son
How long can we look at each other
Down the barrel of a gun?

[Chorus:] 
You're the voice, try and understand it
Make a noise and make it clear
We're not gonna sit in silence
We're not gonna live with fear

This time, you know that we
all can stand together
With the power to be powerful
Believing, we can make it better
We're all someone's daughter
We're all someone's son
How long can we look at each other
Down the barrel of a gun?

A little John Mayer, Anyone?

When I first heard this song, I though 'Whoa, that's sort of lame." To me, the song seemed to be saying "Well, we're looking at what's around us and we know it's not right but we are just going to wait for things to change." But as I listened a little closer to the lyrics, I realized I had it completely wrong. This wasn't a song of apathy. It was a cry against the system that encourages apathy and conforming to established norms.  He pinpoints issues like corruption in politics and story spinning by the media. However, I still dont he has the whole answer. Mayer has taken the first step in identifying the issues, but "waiting on the world to change" is not the answer. Change doesn't just happen, it is brought about by people like us.


Me and all my friends
We're all misunderstood
They say we stand for nothing and
There's no way we ever could

Now we see everything that's going wrong
With the world and those who lead it
We just feel like we don't have the means
To rise above and beat it

So we keep waiting
Waiting on the world to change
We keep on waiting
Waiting on the world to change

It's hard to beat the system
When we're standing at a distance
So we keep waiting
Waiting on the world to change

Now if we had the power
To bring our neighbors home from war
They would have never missed a Christmas
No more ribbons on their door
And when you trust your television
What you get is what you got
Cause when they own the information,
They can bend it all they want

It's not that we don't care,
We just know that the fight ain't fair
So we keep on waiting
Waiting on the world to change

And we're still waiting
Waiting on the world to change
We keep on waiting waiting on the world to change
One day our generation
Is gonna rule the population
So we keep on waiting
Waiting on the world to change

There is a prevailing theme of hope and peace that we can see scattered in songs throughout the years, but none of them capture the message quite like this one does. Orginally composed for "The Wizard of Oz" 'Over the Rainbow' is an anthem of promise. In this version of the song,  Israel Kamakawiwo'ole blends this song beautifully with Louie Armstrong's "What a Wonderful World", an equally powerful plea for a world of promise.

However, hidden in this promise of a 'wonderful world' is a plea for the realization of this dream. "I dream of this world of beauty, love and peace, but 'why, oh, why, can't I' have it?